Adherent cell tests have lagged behind in automation, slowing the discovery of drugs. Semarion’s Semarion® microcarrier platform rationalizes these workflows by testing adherent cells ready for dosage, improving scalability and efficiency. CEO Jeroen Verheyen shares the inspiration behind this technology and its impact on broadband screening and the discovery of AI drugs.
Can you introduce Semarion and explain what inspired the development of your Semacyte® technology?
Semarion is an advanced material company out of the Cavendish laboratory from the University of Cambridge. Our mission is to revolutionize the discovery of drugs by removing the bottlenecks in adherent cell tests – something that has not fundamentally changed for decades.
Inspiration for our technology came from a simple but persistent challenge. Although automation and miniaturization have transformed monocellular and suspension cell work, adherent cells are still based on slow manual processes. Researchers must cultivate cells in the bottles, insure them in multi-puite plates, wait for attachment and then start tests. This process takes time, with a high intensity of resources and difficult in scale, especially when you work with transfective cells transiently, models derived from IPSC or primary patient samples.
Our solution is the semacyte® microcarrier platform, which transforms adherent cells into bars coded, ready for the test reactive This can be frozen, stored and distributed in microplacas if necessary. In pre-attachment cells to ultra-miniaturized microcarriers, we eliminate waiting for fixing, accelerate the configuration of the test and unlock multiplexed cells inside the micro-alls, all without requiring new equipment.
Traditional cell screening methods are often faced with scope and efficiency challenges. How does your Semacyte® microcarrier platform deal with these limitations?
The work flows of traditional adherent cells are intrinsically slow and difficult to evolve. Even with automation, the process of veneer, attachment and culture of cells creates delays and limits the flow. Our semacyte platform addresses these limits by fundamentally rethinking the way in which the adherent cells are managed.
Researchers capture them and cultivate them on ultra -miniaturized petri boxes – our semacyte microcarriers, which are only 140 x 140 microns. Each microcarrier acts as an autonomous environment, supporting cell growth and now morphology. Once prepared, the semacytes can be frozen and stored, ready to be distributed in microplacas at any time.
Another key advantage is scalability. Since semacytes can be handled like suspension cells, they are compatible with liquid handling systems and robotics, allowing fully automated workflows. This facilitates testing of tests, the screen of larger compounds libraries and integration with high-speed (HTS) screening platforms.
One of the main advantages of Semacyte® technology is its ability to improve the discovery of drugs at an early stage. Can you explain how this innovation improves workflows for pharmaceutical and biotechnological companies?
Discovery of drugs at an early stage is a question of speed, efficiency and data quality. Researchers must quickly test a large number of compounds while ensuring that their results are reliable and reproducible. Semacytes responds directly to these needs by allowing faster and more flexible workflows and a generation of higher speed data.
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With the semacytes, you can prepare large lots of cells in advance, freeze them and store them until necessary. When it is time to perform a test, simply defrost the semacytes, pass them in microplaque and start tests – do not wait for attachment, no variability in daily cell culture. This does not only accelerate the configuration of the test, but also guarantees that each experience begins with coherent and high quality cells, improving the reproducibility and reliability of the data.
This approach is particularly precious for high -content imaging, which is essential for capturing rich and large -scale phenotypic data. Our optical bar codes allow researchers to multiply several models of cells in the same well, increasing data density and reducing variability. This supports various medication methods and allows applications such as CRISPR screening, DNA damage response tests and antibody liaison studies. By grouping with immortalized cells, designed or derived from the patient, researchers acquire more relevant information biologically while accelerating workflows.
High speed screening and monocellular analysis are essential in the modern development of drugs. How does Semarion approach differs from existing techniques in these areas?
High speed screening (HTS) and unique analysis have progressed significantly, in particular for suspension cells. However, the adherent cells were left due to the limits of multi-puite plates. Our approach changes by making adherent cells as easy to handle as suspension cells, unlocking the full potential of automation and miniaturization.
The semacytes are designed to integrate transparently into workflows based on existing microplates. Researchers simply provide standard plates microcarriers of 384 or 1,536 wells using liquid manipulation systems. Since the cells are already attached, the tests can start immediately, eliminating the expectation of the fixing of the cells and reducing the installation time from days to hours
Multiplexing changes here. With Semacytes, researchers can accumulate up to 10 different cell models in the same well and follow each using their unique optical barcode. This not only increases the flow of a factor 10, but also reduces costs up to 6 times because fewer plates and reagents are necessary.
The impact of large -scale compounds screening is significant. For example, screening for 100,000 compounds against 10 different cell models in triple would generally require around 8,000 plates at 384 wells. With Semacytes, this number falls to 800 plates, which represents a reduction in the cost, time and resources of ten times.
While AI and Automation continue to shape the life sciences sector, how do you see Semacyte® technology integrate into this progress?
AI and automation transform the discovery of drugs, but their success depends on a crucial factor: high quality and high -speed data. Semacytes play a key role in this ecosystem by allowing a faster and more efficient data generation using workflows suitable for automation.
We actively collaborate with partners in the IA space, including UCL groups exploring the concept of autonomous laboratories – where AI algorithms design and carry out experiments in an automated systems. The semacytes are ideal for this configuration because they eliminate the manual steps traditionally necessary for the tests of adherent cells, which makes the whole of the workflow faster, more reliable and easier to automate.
We also work with Techbio companies that build platforms for discovery of drugs led by AI that rely on large data sets. By allowing the generation of faster and more profitable data, semacytes help these companies to train their AI models more effectively and to validate predictions faster.
Collaboration is often the key to innovation. Was there any notable partnerships or research collaborations that have helped to advance Semarion technology?
We have established a partnership with REVVITY to integrate the Semacyte analysis and the deconvolution of bar codes in their high -content imaging platforms – the Phenix Opera, the Operetta CLS and Signals Image Artist Software Suite – allowing a transparent analysis of multiplex cell models in standard imaging work. With Merck KGAA, we explore the possibility of offering Merck-based Merck-based cell lines with semacyte microcarriers, rationalizing the test configuration and improving the efficiency of their customers.
Closer to home, our collaborations with O2H Discovery and the Milner Therapeutics Institute have demonstrated the effectiveness of semacytes in DNA response tests and CRISPR Arris, providing new information on cellular behavior and therapeutic responses.
For the future, what are the next semarion stages in terms of product development and market expansion?
Our main objective for 2025 is to extend the adoption of the semacyte platform beyond the United Kingdom, with a particular accent on the EU and United States markets. We work to deepen our relations with pharmaceutical companies and CROs, helping them to integrate semacytes into their workflows.
On the product side, we work with EMBL to validate the semacytes compatible to flow to unlock the imagery and sorting of cells fully adherent in flow cytometry systems, resolving a long -standing challenge of the industry. In addition, we collaborate with other organizations to explore new applications such as cell multiplexing for optical screening and cell therapy screening, widening the range of tests that can benefit from the capacities of our platform.
To support this growth, we increase our manufacturing capacities to meet growing demand, guaranteeing a reliable supply of semacyte microcarriers for customers around the world. Our current investment cycle, open until May 2025, will allow us to accelerate both product development and market expansion, solidifying semacytes as a basic technology for the discovery of modern drugs.
Where can readers find more information?
Readers can find out more about Semarion and our semacyte platform by visiting www.semarion.com or follow us on Liendin.
About Jeroen Verheyen
Jeroen Verheyen is the co-founder and CEO of Semarion, where he directs the development of transformative technologies at the intersection of life sciences and material physics.
With advanced diplomas in biomedical sciences and nanotechnology, Jeroen’s research experience extends to MIT medication administration systems, neuroinflammation models at Cambridge University and product development in biotechnological and medical devices. Its various history of R&D, in advice and entrepreneurship gives it a unique overview of the challenges of marketing scientific innovation. At Semarion, Jeroen devotes himself to accelerating the discovery of drugs by creating faster, more evolving and more profitable tools, helping researchers to generate better data with greater efficiency.